Ah, I see. The only way I can see this game being that hard is if Belgium scores quickly, which can happen since we usually start the match pretty laggy. If they can't score on the first 20, or 30 minutes, then I believe their horrible defense will do the job for Brazil.

As for Uruguay and France, I believe France will win too, but it won't be easy because Uruguay knows how to put up a fight (and they have an awesome defense).

I'm bummed about Cavani. It is a similar situation to James Rodriguez and Colombia.

Oh well, such is life.

It's the same here in Australia fhe competition for the talent pool is loaded in favour of AFL  rugby league , Rugby etc ,and the general public only become socceroos every four years usually starting with the qualifiers and peaking at the cup itself ,Australian soccer was the provenance of post WW2 European Immigration and for around half a century these ethnic groups ran the clubs with names such as Juventus , Olympus etc, it helped grow then maintain soccer but got to a point that it was no longer a positive but had become a big factor in the sports marginalisation despite healthy junior participation, the federation had to step in and change clubs names and colors to open up the game  and at the same time lessen ethnic tension, unfortunately like the US it still has to fight for it share in this case with the added drawback of a much smaller talent pool still on the bright side only eleven can take the field at one time .

Me too. Uruguay would be a much stronger contender with him on the field. I hope it all goes well and he manages to at least return on the second half of the match.

Brazil will crush Belgium, that is the easiest prediction of the 4 QF matches. Belgium beat Brazil is not going to happen! Brazil's yellow wall is not going to crumble like the hapless Japanese did in the final 20 minutes.

Then they need to replace Miranda, he's too old and slow now, Carrasco, Lukaku, Mertens and other, pacey players will cause him trouble. Silva isn't that quick either, but he's much, much smarter than Miranda in his play and positions himself almost perfectly almost all the time.

On paper, Belgium are matched with Brazil, but Belgium tend to crumble in later stages and even lose against inferior teams, so I don't have high hopes for them. If Brazil win, I hope they do it the right way, Neymar's endless rolling around is getting tiresome. Simply due to Belgium's historical performance, I give them only small chances of moving on from here, then again; England won on penalties and Germany lost against South Korea so anything can happen!

France and Uruguay are harder to predict, one of the finest attacking sides against possibly the best defensive side in the tournament. I think both teams will have a hard time scoring goals, especially Uruguay without Cavani, but even France. Mbappe, Pogba and great service and effort from their wingbacks will be crucial if they want the win. I think France are taking this one when all is said and done, but not by any huge margin, I wouldn't be shocked to see a 1-0 match here.

Uruguay vs France 0-2
Brazil vs Belgium 1-2

Quarter Finals Predictions
Uruguay 2 - 1 France
Brazil 3 - 1 Belgium
Sweden 0 - 0 England [Sweden to go through on Penalties]
Russia 0 - 3 Croatia

So far the coming home memes have been endearing, but may god have mercy if somehow England make it to the finals.

As a Belgian, i must say this is likely true. Japan more or less beat themselves by not parking the bus after 2-0.

Hoping for France and Belgium today.

France, because fuck Suarez. Belgium, because fuck Neymar.